Policy options analysis and the National Fire Operations Reporting System

Abstract

Effectively managing a fire department requires leaders to understand that allocation adjustment to resources will impact the outcome of structure fire incidents. It is important that fire service leaders and politicians understand how resources deployed impact firefighter and civilian injuries, death, and property loss. Additionally, fire service leaders must have reliable data to understand the complexities and apply the correct resources. The National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS) is a voluntary system and only describes the cause of a fire, its origin, and how a fire spreads within a structure. Information submitted into the NFIRS database does not provide real-time information. Despite recent advances in technology, fire departments do not have a method to determine the availability of resources able and ready to respond or the capability of those resources to manage the event. This thesis will identify those specific definitions and describe the operational effectiveness of fire department resources deployed to a structure fire incident. Operational effectiveness states the match between the resources deployed to the incident type and management of the events. Explaining these terms empowers the leader to allocate the correct resources—reducing firefighter and civilian injury, death, and property loss.